One of the first things I noticed about Archibald’sAdventures was the colorful and crisp graphics. The introduction shows off how great the visuals look on the iPhone. The levels themselves are also packed with details, and when you’re navigating the dangerous hallways of Professor Klumpfus’ mansion, searching for the perfect skateboard ramp.

Speaking of skateboarding, once trapped in the mansion, the player has to use Archibald’s skateboard to get past the platforming challenges. Essentially, it helps to explain the gameplay mechanics: the player doesn’t have control over when they jump (kind of like the Legend of Zelda games), but instead, jumps when given a “wind-up.” If you have three straight platform units, you’ll be able to leap large gaps, and that ability continues so long as you keep your speed up.

There’s also a lot of switch flipping, lever pulling, and gate opening to do as you navigate to the end of each level. These different elements are introduced over the course of several introductory levels, so if this is your first platformer, or you’re just not used to this kind of gameplay, there’s plenty of time to get your feet wet before you have to go it alone.

Rake in Grass is great at packing in lots of gameplay too. In Archibald’s case, that means over a hundred levels in the main game, plus another 65 levels in expansion packs. I’m not really sure if they’re expansion packs if they’re free and come with the game – but when you’ve already completed a ton of levels and there are even more to play through, who cares?

Archibald’s challenge level increases gradually, but you can still run into some trouble every once in a while. If you fly off a platform and land in some acid, there’s no need to worry. You have as many lives as it needs to complete a level, and there are also checkpoints as you go, so if you haven’t figured out how to get past the flying spider monster, you won’t have to navigate your way around the crab monster or the drops of acid again.

Overall, Archibald’s Adventures is a great platformer for both people new to the genre, and people who have played these types of games their whole lives. It offers a great mix of variety, challenge, and smart gameplay.

Archibald’s Adventures is compatible with the iPhone and iPod Touch. It requires iPhone OS 2.1 or later.